W Ords of My Perfect Teacher
__________________
International Film Circuit, Inc.
International
presents
An (ir)reverent portrait of
Dzongsar Khyentse Norbu Rinpoche
a film by Lesley Ann Patten
Featuring
Bernardo Bertolucci and Steven Seagal
And music by
Sting
produced by Lesley Ann Patten for ZIJI Film & Television Ltd., and
Kent Martin for The National Film Board of Canada
Canada - Color - 103 min - 35mm - Digital Surround Sound
Contact:
Wendy Lidell 212-777-5690 wlidell@infc.us WORDS OF MY
PERFECT TEACHER
A film by Lesley Ann Patten
Synopsis
From the streets of London and New York to the World Cup in Germany to the mystical mountain kingdom of Bhutan, Words of My Perfect Teacher follows three students on a quest for spiritual enlightenment. Buddhism teaches that to walk the path toward true enlightenment you must have a teacher. These students are ready to be taught the path, there is only one small snag: their teacher.
Meet Dzongsar Khyentse Norbu Rinpoche. He may be one of the world’s most eminent
Buddhist teachers, but it’s a job description he slyly rejects at every turn. A citizen of the world and as fascinated by soccer and filmmaking, Dzongsar Khyentse constantly confounds all attempts at easy categorization.
Taking its title from the writings of 13th-century Tibetan Lama Patrul Rinpoche, the film’s point of view is inspired by Buddhist philosophy — which says that we can’t really change human behavior until we learn to deal with our mind. The mind is the starting point of all suffering and the source of closed hearts and entrenched views. Dzongsar Khyentse teaches by defying easy definition, forcing his students to turn inward and confront their own expectations and desires.
When filmmaker Lesley Ann Patten informed Dzongsar Khyentse that she wished to make a film about him, he performed a “mo” or spiritual divination, to predict the outcome. The result he reported: “barely enough grass to feed a goat for half a day.” Patten sets out
International Film Circuit, Inc.
International
presents
An (ir)reverent portrait of
Dzongsar Khyentse Norbu Rinpoche
a film by Lesley Ann Patten
Featuring
Bernardo Bertolucci and Steven Seagal
And music by
Sting
produced by Lesley Ann Patten for ZIJI Film & Television Ltd., and
Kent Martin for The National Film Board of Canada
Canada - Color - 103 min - 35mm - Digital Surround Sound
Contact:
Wendy Lidell 212-777-5690 wlidell@infc.us WORDS OF MY
PERFECT TEACHER
A film by Lesley Ann Patten
Synopsis
From the streets of London and New York to the World Cup in Germany to the mystical mountain kingdom of Bhutan, Words of My Perfect Teacher follows three students on a quest for spiritual enlightenment. Buddhism teaches that to walk the path toward true enlightenment you must have a teacher. These students are ready to be taught the path, there is only one small snag: their teacher.
Meet Dzongsar Khyentse Norbu Rinpoche. He may be one of the world’s most eminent
Buddhist teachers, but it’s a job description he slyly rejects at every turn. A citizen of the world and as fascinated by soccer and filmmaking, Dzongsar Khyentse constantly confounds all attempts at easy categorization.
Taking its title from the writings of 13th-century Tibetan Lama Patrul Rinpoche, the film’s point of view is inspired by Buddhist philosophy — which says that we can’t really change human behavior until we learn to deal with our mind. The mind is the starting point of all suffering and the source of closed hearts and entrenched views. Dzongsar Khyentse teaches by defying easy definition, forcing his students to turn inward and confront their own expectations and desires.
When filmmaker Lesley Ann Patten informed Dzongsar Khyentse that she wished to make a film about him, he performed a “mo” or spiritual divination, to predict the outcome. The result he reported: “barely enough grass to feed a goat for half a day.” Patten sets out